Sick Snow: Zero
by StingerShip
Summary: A prequel to Sick Snow. Disclaimer's in bio.
1. Chapter 1

**And here is the first chapter! This story is a prologue for Sick Snow. Unless you haven't read Sick Snow then you should know who the two main characters are. Now let's start.**

 **Disclaimer:** Don't own World Trigger

 **Warning:** Language

* * *

 **Chapter 1:** Wisteria

* * *

"Shitokei-san, can you help me out for a second?"

"Okay."

"Oh! Shitokei-san, when you're done there, could you help out over here?"

"Okay."

The scene currently playing out was a single girl speed walking through a school hall while multiple people called her from different directions. She didn't stop for a moment and seemed to just be a blur if you really tried to catch her.

This girl had long, black hair in a hime-cut style and hazel eyes. She gave off a calming aura with a calm and collected expression. Even with all the walking around, she didn't seem to be breaking a sweat in the slightest and continued on her way. If anything, people thought she looked even more like a majestic woman when she moved like that.

"Shitokei-senpai, can I ask you for some help?"

The girl turned to the speaking to her to see a boy with short spiky gray-brown hair, which seems to be slicked back. She recognized him as both a fellow student and fellow agent of Border.

"Yes? What do you need, Murakami-san?"

"There's no need to be so formal. Your my senpai after all."

"Very well. What do you need, Murakami-kun?"

"I just need some help taking papers to the teachers," the boy said, pointing to a stack of said papers. "It would take a while by myself and I actually need to be on my way in a little bit."

"Alright. Let's go then."

"Sorry for the trouble."

"It's no problem at all." The two went and got their fair share of papers before walking to where the teachers lounge was. "I'm sure you are quite busy, so it's understandable why you would want to leave."

"Thank you. And you seem pretty busy yourself. As a matter of fact, you always seem to be busy. I guess people really trust you," Murakami said with a small laugh.

"Yes, well, I'm glad I'm kept busy. It gives me something to do. Although it is nice to relax once in a while," the girl said with a small smile.

"The fuck'd you say, ya fuckin' bastard!?"

The two turned to the window when they heard the yell and went over to see what it was about. What they saw was some guy with his hands in his pockets stepping on another person's face. They couldn't see who the guy was since he was turned away from them.

Even with the guy turned away from them though Murakami could still tell who it was and shook his head.

"Not this again..."

"What do you mean? Do you know that guy?"

"He's actually in my class," Murakami sighed out. "He seems to dislike me, but I'm rather fine with him."

"Is he always that violent?"

"He seems like it from how he acts. Usually either our teacher or I have to stop him from hurting someone, or hurting them more, like in this case."

Just as he said that, a man wearing a track suit walked towards the two and quickly pulled the guy off the other person before yelling in his face.

The student didn't seem to be paying any attention to the teacher, but _was_ looking at the two. He gave them a glare and stuck up his middle finger at them before sneering at the teacher.

"He seems to be a troublemaker."

"I suppose that's a fair assumption," Murakami said as the two continued to walk. "Almost everyone thinks he is. Me included, before certain things came up."

"Oh? Am I wrong then?"

"Not completely. He does cause trouble, but that's because he sets up pranks. When he gets in fights it's because the other person starts it. You'll never see him instigate a fight. Or at least I haven't seen it happen yet."

"If they know about this, then why does anyone bother him?"

"You should have a better answer to that than me. But it's most likely because of who he is related to."

"And that would be?"

"Taiyōko."

* * *

'Taiyōko, huh? So he's related to that couple. He seems like a delinquent, but Murakami-kun said he's always first in class and never starts a fight.'

"Hey, bitch! Murakami talked to you yesterday! The fuck did he say!?"

Turning around, Shitokei saw the boy from the day before. He had a scowl on his face and both hands in his pockets. Now that she got a closer look at him, she could see that he really did have black hair and onyx eyes.

She couldn't see him yell yesterday.

"Shouldn't introductions be first? My name is Shitokei Fuji. Hello there," the girl said with a bow.

"Fuck that shit! I'm asking you a damn question. You better answer or you'll end up like that fucking trash from yesterday," the boy said, scowl intensifying.

"..."

"Tsk. Fine. I'm Kiyoshi." He quickly turned to her and gave a harsh glare. "And if you say any shit about my last name, I really will step on your face."

"See? Was that so hard?"

"Whatever. Just answer my fucking question."

"Do you use that language because you think it makes you sound tougher, or is that just a bad habit?"

"The fuck? Just answer the fucking question!"

"It seems to be the latter."

"I swear that if you don't answer right now..."

Fuji simply ignored the threat and continued to spew almost random things. She hadn't even noticed what she was doing and just went on and on about nothing in particular. It kept her busy enough, so she didn't think to stop at all.

Meanwhile, Kiyoshi was near his breaking point with his whole face going red and veins starting to appear on his face. He clenched his fists and ignored her, deciding to just go around her.

"Screw this shit. I don't have time for your stupidity."

"But I'm the top in the school." Fuji started walking next to the boy, ignoring the glare she was receiving. "He said you were good in school, by the way. I will admit that I was shocked by that information."

"Tsk. Deciding to answer my damn questions won't make things better, bitch."

"Oh, right. I forgot you had asked questions. Sorry."

"How the fuck can you forget after a minutes?"

"That's because of my Side Effect."

"..."

"You're curious about what a Side Effect is, aren't you?"

Deciding to completely ignore her, Kiyoshi continued to walk without paying any attention to the girl next to him. He figured she was just some crazy girl who didn't know when to shut up. He's seen those kinds of people before, so it wasn't anything new.

The two continued to walk with one seeming to get more mad while the other just talked on as if they were giving a lecture. If someone would to look at the two they would probably see it as friends talking while they head to school, not two strangers who barely met a few minutes ago.

As the two continued to walk, they didn't notice a small group walking from another direction. Unlike the two though they were older people who looked like they were in college.

With neither group paying attention a clash was inevitable.

Kiyoshi watched with a bored expression as one of the people in the group accidently ran into Fuji, knocking them both to the ground. He saw some of the group look on and help the other girl up while the other people walked up to Fuji.

"Hey girly, shouldn't you apologize? You ran into my girlfriend just now!"

Kiyoshi just sighed and was about to start walking again before the guys talking to Fuji stood in front of him. He glared at them and noticed they actually took a step back from the look.

"Sh-shouldn't you defend your girl and make sure she doesn't run into people!?"

"Hm. She's not my 'girl', and they both ran into each other, like fucking morons. They didn't see each other, so it's not really anyone's fault," Kiyoshi said as he walked forward.

Getting a little red faced, the guy talking walked up and grab Kiyoshi's collar while saying, "Clearly your bitch there ran into our friend here!"

'Why the fuck does this feel like some kind of high school drama shit?' Kiyoshi let out a sigh and glanced at the girls. "They're both fine, so just leave it alone." He turned back to the guy and gave him the harshes glare he could muster - which was like looking a raging lion in the face. "Or would you like to deal with a Border agent?"

"B-Border...? Like hell someone like you is in Border!"

" _I'm_ not in Border, but _she is_."

The whole group looked at Fuji and saw a Trigger sticking out of her bag and a Border emblem on her bag. She didn't notice the stares though as she was busy getting up and dusting herself off.

"Tsk. Fine. We need to get going anyways."

Kiyoshi went from glaring to a simple bored look as the group walked away. He turned to Fuji and saw her putting on her messenger bag. He finally was able to start walking to his destination without anyone stopping him.

"I didn't think you would do that. I mean, according to Murakami-kun, you only fight when someone else starts the fight. To me it seemed like you would punch them in the face."

"Don't think I'm a fucking wimp. Those pieces of shit weren't worth my energy."

Deciding it would be better to just continue on to school instead of angering the boy next to her. Fuji just started to dwell in her thoughts before quickly getting out and paying attention to something else.

* * *

'He's different from what I thought. I really thought he would throw the first punch, regardless of what Murakami-kun said.'

Fuji walked through the school campus with a tangerine in hand. She had been thinking about Kiyoshi when she had her rare moments of spacing out during class and lunch until now. She could think of 1000 things in a few seconds and a quarter of them were of Kiyoshi and of how he is.

She could understand multiple things about him from their confrontation earlier in the morning, but they were more just theories because of her Side Effect. She knew most of them were probably right, but there were things she couldn't get a good percentage on about him.

One of those small percentages was _why_ she was even thinking about it all.

"Why the fuck did you get in the way! You already know he made the first move!"

Hearing the yelling going on, she looked over to see a crowd whispering among themselves. She usually didn't get involved with stuff like that, but she recognized the voice that had just yelled out.

It was the same voice that had yelled at her earlier.

Letting curiosity take over, she walked over and made her way through the group to get to the center. What she saw was a guy crawling away on the ground with two people standing. One was Murakami, with a red spot on his cheek and looking like it was swelling up. The second person was Kiyoshi with a balled up fist, glaring daggers at Murakami.

"You know you shouldn't bother with stuff like this. You get in trouble enough as it is."

"Fuck you! If I get in trouble then let me get in trouble, ya damn bastard!"

Looking around, Fuji could see the guy on the ground was gone and the whispering was more intense, and loud. It went from what had happened to Kiyoshi's family like a bad game of Telephone where everyone person playing tried to get it wrong. Looking forward again, she saw Kiyoshi now turning his glares to the crowd.

That single glare he was giving to the ones that gathered wasn't anywhere near as "calm" as the one he gave the college students.

This one looked like the devil himself was glaring at them and finding which one to pick off first.

 **Warning! A Gate is opening! Warning! A Gate is opening!**

Fuji let out a small curse as she remembered her Trigger was in her bag _in her classroom_. She saw the crowd quickly running away as three Marmods came through the Gate. She looked to Murakami and saw that he also didn't seem to have his Trigger.

"Murakami-kun, go get your Trigger while I distract it," Fuji said as she ran forward.

She threw a few rocks to get their attention. It seemed to work as the three turned to her.

She started running away with the three running after her.

She dodged the attacks headed for her and tumbled to the side.

'Why did a Gate appear outside of the Forbidden Zone? This doesn't usually happen. I guess I just need to wait for Murakami-kun.'

She jumped up and used one of the Marmod's attack to jump on it's leg and launch herself in the air to land behind them and throw some more rocks at them.

Contrary to her appearance, Fuji was actually quite strong, even without her Trion Body.

She could easily take out a great number of people and even someone on the wrestling team.

Quickly getting to action, Murakami did as he was told and quickly ran to the building to get his Trigger. He noticed his classmate wasn't following and turned around to yell, but was stopped when he saw Kiyoshi glaring at the Neighbor and holding a Trigger in his hand.

"Taiyōko, why-"

"Fuck this shit! Trigger On!"

* * *

 **And there's the first chapter for this story. I'm sure no one really cares much for this fic, but I'll update anyways.**

 **If you've read Sick Snow then I wanna know what you think of the difference between the characters.**

 **Nothing else to say, so until next time...**

 **Bye!**


	2. Chapter 2

**And here's a new chapter! Although... With probably only one person reading it... That isn't much... Anyways! Here it is! Hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 2:** Horrible Kid

* * *

Murakami and Fuji watched as Kiyoshi's real body was switched out for a trion made one. His school uniform was switched out to an open gray jacket with pants. A sword in a sheath had formed at his hip.

They were pulled out of their stupor when he pulled the sword from the sheath and ran forward. They went back to action with Fuji trying to distract the Neighbors while Murakami ran inside the building.

Kiyoshi clicked his tongue as he ran forward towards one of the Marmods with the sword at the ready. He swung the sword in hopes of getting the opponent's core, but he was blocked and pushed back. He still gave a smirk when he saw that damage was done to the leg of the Marmod.

He ran forward again, but instead of going for a swing he gripped the hilt with both hands and thrust forward. This was also blocked, but the blade pierced through the Neighbor's arm and almost made it to the core.

Just as he was about to go for another attack, Fuji came from behind the Marmod and kicked him in the face, sending him back yet again.

He gave a grunt then noticed he didn't feel any pain from the hit. Not to say he wasn't mad about it though.

"What the fuck, you bitch!?" he yelled as Fuji stood next to him.

"Where did you get that Trigger from? Wait... You stole it, didn't you? From who?" Fuji kept her eyes on the three opponents as she addressed Kiyoshi. "There's a high chance you took it from someone from this school. Was it from that boy before? No. He isn't a Border agent."

"You keep asking these fucking questions and answering them yourself! Stop that before I punch you!" Kiyoshi clicked his tongue as he faced the three with the sword at the ready. "And what's it-"

"You know very well why it matters."

"Whatever. Just leave these three shits to me."

"Hold-... And he's gone... Sigh."

Without anymore being said, Kiyoshi ran forward for a third time.

Unlike the other two times though, he was ready.

Well as ready as he a newbie could be.

He saw one of the Marmods try and crush him with its leg, so he moved to the side before slicing it off. From the corner of his eye he saw another leg being swung towards him, so he mimiced the action with his sword, cutting off the leg.

'He must have a good amount of Trion to use Kōgetsu like that...' Mei saw another attack heading for the boy that he clearly didn't see, so she took action. "Shield!"

"Shield...?"

Kiyoshi was shocked when a barrier came up between him and one of the legs that was head for him. He understood what happened and used the chance to slice off the leg before moving in and cutting the core, making the Marmod fall to the ground.

"Ha! That was so fucking easy!"

"Don't look away!"

Seeing what she meant, Kiyoshi turned to see the two remaining Marmods going in for attacks. Smirking to himself, he put up another Shield.

He went wide eyed when they easily pierced through it though and took off his arm and leg. He refused to close his eyes as the two brought up their legs again.

He would take this attack and receive the punishment he would get for it.

"Shikifuku, activate."

Just as the teenager was going to get pierced by the two Marmods, a yellow dome-like barrier came up and blocked the attack.

It held them in place long enough for Murakami to slash their cores and make them fall to the ground.

Murakami moved away from the two fallen soldiers and jumped over to his classmate to check if he was fine. What he got in return was a pissed off look, but nothing too serious.

"So it was you who took my Trigger. Hope you're ready for a massive beat down, you damn brat."

Fuji looked to see the teacher from the day before.

She noticed that now he was wearing a black bracelet that seemed to float around his wrist for a bit before going back to looking like a regular black, metal bracelet.

She saw him let out a sigh as she walked towards the two students and three fallen Marmods.

Both Kiyoshi's and Murakami's Trion Bodies were gone as the teacher got to them. Knowing how this would go, Murakami kept his distance by taking a few steps back. He was right to do so as the teacher punched Kiyoshi on the head with so much force that it knocked him out.

"It's good that you found me, Kou." The teacher picked up Kiyoshi and threw him over his shoulder as he turned around. "Hey, Shitokei-chan, right? Do you mind taking care of things here with Kou while I take this idiot to base?"

"U-um... No... I don't mind, sir," Fuji said, still in a little bit of shock.

"No need for that. Just call me Akasora-sensei."

"Right..."

* * *

"Was it necessary to just dump him in here? On the floor no less."

"Yeah, well, he kinda deserved this, ya know."

Hearing these two voices made the groggy Kiyoshi sit up with a start. He looked over to see Akasora lazily looking at him with a man behind a desk also looking at him.

He clicked his tongue and headed for the door but was stopped when one if them said, "Wait a minute." Turning back around he saw that it was the one behind the desk.

"What? I'm not in the mood to deal with this shit. I need to go see someone."

"That will have to wait. We need to talk to you about what you did today." Pointing to the seat next to Akasora, the man sat back in his chair. "You stole a Trigger from an A-Rank agent. I hope you don't think you're just going to walk out on that."

"Tsk. I didn't think that in the first damn place. Besides, this old guy shouldn't have just left it laying around for someone to get it. It's his own damn fault for that."

"I had it on me at all times, so you getting it was of your own doing. Not to mention that if I _did happen_ to leave it laying around, that's not an invitation for you to go and take it."

"Whatever. Just tell me my damn punishment already. This shit is annoying. And like I said, I have somewhere to be, that isn't this shithole."

"Sigh. You punishment is that... You will join Border. Although that foul mouth will need to be fixed."

Kiyoshi stared.

He did nothing but stare at the two.

He wasn't sure if this was some kind of joke, but either way he wasn't laughing.

He had stolen a Trigger, used it the same day he stole it and his punishment was to join the place that made said stolen item. It was like a thief being told he would be working at a store that had no cameras while nobody would be around.

It just made no sense.

"... What's the fucking catch? No way in hell would it be that fucking simple."

"Yeah... That foul mouth needs a good beat down..." Letting out a sigh, the man behind the desk rubbed his forehead. "Chishi told me that you were actually able to hold your own in a fight."

"Ha!? It wasn't that hard. That sword was easy to use, so I just fought like normal."

"Using Kōgetsu that easily for the first time is impressive," Akasora said with a bored tone. "Unrefined for sure, and not to mention you don't even know how to use any other Triggers, but impressive none the less."

"I suppose that's to be expected from-"

"Say that fucking name and I'll punch you in the fucking face. I don't give a damn how high on the food chain you are, I'll get higher just to beat the shit out of you if you say that fucking name."

"That's some treat. But there's no way you could beat Masafumi that easily. Real body or not, he's still way stronger than you."

"Tsk. Whatever." Turing around, Kiyoshi gave the two the middle finger and left by saying, "Fine. Do whatever the hell you do and send me the shit I need to know. I'm leaving now."

With a slam of the door, Kiyoshi was out of the room.

That just left the two older men in the room to think about what they were going to do.

"... He doesn't know his way around here..."

"Nope."

"Sigh."

* * *

"Fucking shit, damn, crap, shit, fuck..."

As he stormed through the Border HQ building, Kiyoshi basically radiated off a deadly aura. He was pretty sure he was lost, but he wouldn't admit it even if it took him a thousand years to get out. He absolutely refused to ask anyone for assistance either.

Speaking of other people, the ones who saw him immediately back away or turned away if they caught his gaze. They all seemed like lower ranked agents, so they didn't even register on Kiyoshi's radar.

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!"

"Well that's a mouth you've got on you."

Turning to give the harshest glare he could muster, Kiyoshi came face-to-face with a blond haired guy who looked to be his age and with a grin on his face.

"Who the fuck are you and what the fuck do you want?"

"Wow~ That mouth of yours sure is something. I don't think I've heard someone curse as much as you do. Good job on that, I suppose." The blond clapped his hands as he gave a small laugh.

Kiyoshi was ready to punch the guy and give him loads of bruises, but stopped himself when he remembered where he was. While he could care less about what actually happened to the guy, he knew that this wasn't his territory, so a fight like that had to be held off.

"Anyways... I saw you looked lost and thought I'd come and help you out. Name's Inukai Sumiharu," the blond said with the grin still in place.

"Tsk... My name's Kiyoshi."

"Hm?"

"That's all. _Just Kiyoshi._ "

"Nice to meet ya then, Kiyoshi. So ya want some help in getting out of here?"

"Either you have too much damn free time on your hands or you're just a lazy bastard. Should you being doing something else? Don't you agents have teams or some shit like that?"

"Seriously! How many people try to pick fights with you because of your language!? I really wanna know!"

"Stay still for a moment. I'm gonna punch you so fucking hard that at least fifteen of these other people will feel it. Seriously. Stay still for at least three damn seconds."

"Scary~ Scary~

"Ah. There you are."

Looking over from their position, both Kiyoshi and Inukai turned to see Fuji looking at them.

Kiyoshi, ignoring the girl, went back to trying to hit Inukai in the face while said person was simply laughing while keeping Kiyoshi away.

Letting out a small sigh, Fuji walked up to the two before grabbed Kiyoshi by the collar of his shirt and easily tossing him to the side.

Inukai let out a whistle as he sat up to see the harsh glare on Kiyoshi's face.

Not taking kindly to be thrown, Kiyoshi went up and tried to punch Fuji, but the next thing he knew he was in the air for a few seconds before having his body slammed onto the ground. He looked up to see the other two looking down at him. He tired for another hit only to get a kick to the head, knocking him out.

"Don't you think that was a little harsh?" Inukai asked as he backed up a bit.

"Was it? I thought that was the best way to calm him down," Fuji said with a girlish head tilt. Grabbing the unconscious boy by the collar again, she started walking away while dragging him. "We need to go see someone now. Bye, Inukai-san."

"Ha Ha Ha... Bye...?"

* * *

 **Welp! Shinoda and Inukai are in this now and I still suck at writing! Peace!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! Let's get started!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3:** Why Worry

* * *

"What the fucking hell is your fucking problem!?"

Kiyoshi continued to yell and struggle as Fuji dragged him along the ground.

Fuji, not listening to the profanities, continued on until she reached one of the open areas in the base. She walked over to a table and dumped the boy in the bother before making herself confortable on the other side.

Kiyoshi quickly sat up and looked ready to punch her in the face, but held back as if to show that he was better than her.

"Alright. Since you will be joining Border, I will help you out by telling you-"

"Wait just a fucking minute! How the fucking hell did you know that!?"

"Akasora-sensei asked us to help you. And by 'us' I mean Murakami-kun and-"

"Alright! Fine! Just hurry the fuck up before I fall asleep here!... Wait, what about school? The day isn't done."

"Odd that you get calm when you said that last part."

"Just fucking answer!"

"I was called here. I am excused for the rest of the day. After school is over you will meet up with Murakami-kun to see how well you do in a fight against an agent."

"And who the fuck said would listen to-"

"Alright then. Let's start off with-"

"Fucking bitch!"

The people walking by just gave small glances to the two before quickly walking away. They weren't sure what was going on, but they didn't want to know. The yelling scared them.

The only person who didn't seem effected by this was a blond guy with a grin.

He was the same age as Kiyoshi. He should have been in school as well, but he had been let out early since he had defense duty with his squad.

When he saw the scene from earlier he couldn't help but to follow the two. That's what led him to walking up to the booth.

"Hey~ Ya mind if I listen in? I don't have to be with my squad for a while, so it should be fine."

"Very well," Fuji answered kindly. She turned back to Kiyoshi as she pulled out a notebook. "Now then, let's go over same of the basics. After that we will move on to the Triggers."

"Tsk. I already know this shit. I know about the rank wars, orientation day, how many points it takes to barely make it in and about squads."

"That's odd. If you don't mind, where did you get that information from?"

"None of your fucking business."

"If you ones that, then let's get to the Triggers," Inukai interrupted, trying to keep things tame. "Rather, let's start with the positions. There's Attacker; people who use blades for up-close battles. Then there's Gunner, which I am. As the name implies, we use guns for distance attacks. There are also Shooter who use their Trion to freely fire shots. Lastly we have Sniper. That should be self explanatory."

"Alright. I've already chosen mine then."

"Oh~ And what is it~?"

"All of the above."

Inukai started laughing while Fuji shook her head.

"Those would be All-Rounders." Fuji showed a picture of someone holding two guns and a sword. "Being an All-Rounder is difficult. You need to focus on one type of fighting and usually can't switch during a fight. Only two people can do that."

"By the way, what the hell are you and Murakami?"

"Murakami-kun is an Attacker. I am an All-Rounder."

"Fine. I'll just surpass you by leaps and bounds and show you how easy it is to be one."

Inukai gave a wary smile at this. He did find the challenge interesting, but he thought that now the other male was getting a little too big headed.

Fuji on the other hand gave a blank look before turning back to her notebook. She drew something else and showed it to Kiyoshi.

The image was of what appeared to be the inside of a Trigger. The two were amazed at how detailed the picture was.

"Alright then. Let's go over the basics of Triggers. These little chips are the actual Triggers," Fuji said as she pointed to the chips. "They decide what outward for the user's Trion will take. You can set up to eight different types of Triggers. You fight by switching between offensive and defensive ones." She looked up at the two while lifting her right arm and pointed at the top row. "This side is the Main Triggers for your dominant hand." She then pointed to the second row and lifted her left arm. "These are the Sub Triggers for your other hand. You can use two types at the same time."

"So you can make multiple styles using multiple Triggers..."

"First...Let's look at the Attacker Triggers." She made sure Kiyoshi was paying attention before continuing. "The first one will be a lightweight blade speed-oriented attackers use often: Scorpion."

"Hm. Quick moves that don't do much damage..."

"The blade can be materialized at will, and it weighs almost nothing. You can manifest blades from places besides your hand. By adjusting Trion...it's shape and length can be modified. On the other hand...It's not very durable, so it can break pretty easily if you block with it. It's basically used for offense only."

"So this one is usi for people who can move around easily and dodge attacks instead of taking them."

"Next. The most popular, all-purpose blade: Kogetsu. This is the one you used before, and the one Murakami-kun uses. Unlike Scorpion, it's not easily manifested or retracted. But it has a nice balance of power and durability. It's pretty heavy, and you can't change it's shape or length. Definitely a masterpiece in total stats. And also...by using Trion, and a special Optional Trigger, it can momentarily extend it's attack."

"When I used it, it felt like a regular sword. My kenjutsu will work fine for it. Will battoujutsu work though...?"

"That Optional Trigger she mentioned works like battoujutsu. It's called Senku."

"Now going to Gunners and Shooters."

"I'll take over for this part~"

"By all means."

"So the four shots you can fire are Asteroid, Hound, Viper and Meteora. Each one has something special about them with Asteroid being a powerful shot, Hound following the target, Viper being able to change trajectory and Meteora causing explosions when fired. Most people cant fire Viper in real-time though, so they have set courses to choose from."

"Then you just need enough focus to fire Viper the way you want..."

"Then there are composite bullets. You mix two shots together to make a stronger and better one. Although, it take time to make them."

"So that just leaves Sniper Triggers. Alright. Lemme hear 'em."

Inukai and Fuji were a little shocked at how calm Kiyoshi seemed to be. He easily took in the information and hadn't cursed much when he spoke during their explanations.

"Right... There are three Triggers for Snipers. The first is called Ibis. That one weights quite a bit, and it's shots are pretty slow. It makes up for those with its power though. Then there's Lightning. It's sorta like the opposite of Ibis with its light weight and fast, but weak shots. Lastly is the Egret. That one is the perfect balance for shots."

Kiyoshi nodded his head when the explanation was done.

He had already thought of the way he could utilize each Trigger.

He may have been forced into this position, but that didn't mean he wouldn't try to make it to the top. He would learn everything he could about how things worked so that he wouldn't have people mess with him anymore.

"So-"

"So this is where you've been, Inukai."

The three looked up to see a brown haired man standing at the end of the table with his arms crossed.

He was Ninomiya Masataka, an A-Rank at Border.

Inukai gave a sheepish laugh as he scratched the back of his head. This easily gave off the impression that the brunet was the leader of the squad that Inukai was in.

Fuji didn't seem to mind the interruption and just gave a simple greeting.

Kiyoshi on the other hand...

"Hey, 007-wannabe-"

"How do you even know that movie?"

"-we're busy here. Go take your annoying, pompis attitude out of here before I punch you hard enough to kick you out of that body."

'How did he know that was a Trion Body?' Fuji thought with a raised eyebrow.

"Ah! Kiyoshi, this is my captain, Ninomiya Masataka. Ninomiya-san, this is Kiyoshi. He's gonna be joining Border soon."

"Hey, shitface, who said you could be giving out info about me like that?" Kiyoshi turned from Inukai back to Ninomiya. "And you, stop giving me that idiot face. Ya look like an idiot who can't decide if he has to shit or if he's hungry."

"Someone like him joint Border... I really don't know what to think. He's clearly not going to last long."

"And here I though Mino was having a good influence on you..."

Inukai shook his head as he stood up. He gave a grin to the two still sitting and waved before taking his leave.

"I'll see ya two around."

Kiyoshi clicked his tongue and crossed his arms. He turned back to Fuji with an irritated look.

He just felt like he wouldn't like the brunet, but figured he would at least just keep away from the guy. He didn't count the feeling as hate, so much as annoyance.

"Tsk. So what next? You said I've gotta fight Murakami, right? Are we suppose to wait for him? That's too much of a fucking irritation. I've got somewhere to be."

"Multiple things to say about that."

Akasora walked up to them with a sigh.

He had his hands in his pockets and was looking directly at the two.

He had forgotten that the school day was still going on, so he ended up talking with Shinoda. He ended up calling in so that a substitute could be called in. Afterwards he went on the search for the one he left to roam the base.

Now here he was, bored out of his mind, but ready to do his favorite thing.

"We'll let you fight against Kou later. We've decided that you will be a special case. Usually you _would_ have to wait for orientation day, but since I was bored and your sister said some thing, we've decided that you'll get a special test. You will still do the regular things someone has to do to get in, but you will also have to fight against Kou to really see how you fair."

"Tsk. Fuck that shit. I don't want in because some old ass was bored or because by bitch of a sister said some shit."

"Well, regardless, you're gonna have to do it to make up for what you've done. Be happy. You basically get a pass for taking my Trigger."

"Tsk."

"Now then, let's go."

Akasora started to leave, but stopped when he didn't hear anyone following him.

He turned around and looked Kiyoshi dead in the eye.

"We're gonna help you out. We're going a lap around the city."

"The fuck!? Like fucking hell I can do that!"

"Sounds like fun. Mind if I join in?"

"Hey, bitch! Don't go along with him!"

"Sure. Let's see how well you do."

"Fucking hell! Screw you two!"

"Let's get going then."

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"

* * *

"So how many points do you need until you make it to B-Rank?"

"Like, 2000 more or so."

'Ah. They must be in Border.'

A girl was sitting by herself on a bench at a park.

She had long, black hair that was pushed behind her ear. She sat upright and with the perfect posture of royalty. Her eyes were soft and caring. Her skin was perfect and light, not a single flaw could be found on it. All-in-all she gave off the aura of a princess that everyone loved and would lay down their lives for.

This girl was the one who was considered "normal" in the family of soldiers. She didn't care much for violence and would prefer to see things sorted out calmly. But even with that kind of mindset she knew that you couldn't reason with the creatures that came through the Gates that appeared.

This girl is Taiyōko Hoshi.

She was sitting alone in the park because she was waiting for a certain someone to come by.

"You look similar, but you don't look like you're about to punch someone."

Hoshi quickly turned her head to see Murakami standing there calmly.

"Hello. I'm Murakami Kou. Tai- Kiyoshi told me to check up on you. You also said he can't make it today and that he would make it up to you."

As he spoke, Murakami got a good look at the girl and found it hard to not look away. If he didn't know any better he would assume she really was a princess instead a school girl.

"I see. Thank for the information, Murakami-san."

'She even _speaks_ like a princess...' Clearing his throat, Murakami held out his hand and gave a smile. "How about I walk you home, Hime-sama?"

He really meant that as a joke, but she seemed upset now that he had said it. He wanted to take it back, but she stood up so abruptly that he couldn't muster a word.

"I know you did not mean anything by calling me that, but please refrain from saying it from now on."

Murakami simply nodded his head.

"I am sorry, Murakami-san. It's just that I get teased quite a bit with people referring to me as a princess. Kiyo-nii usually keeps those people away, so..."

"I see. I'm sorry about that then. I won't call you that anymore. Now then, about my offer."

"Right. I will take it up. Thank you."

* * *

 **And there's the next chapter! I really don't know where that ending part came from, but oh well. I hope you enjoyed!**

 **Until next time... See ya!**


	4. Chapter 4

**So... This chapter is odd in** ** _many, many_** **ways... I still hope you enjoy.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4:** No Parallels

* * *

"This sucks... This sucks... THIS FUCKING SUCKS!"

Kiyoshi was radiating an aura of death as he stormed through the school campus.

Every person, whether they be a student or teacher, kept their distance from him. They muttered "Scary" and "Are we sure he isn't the devil?" as he walked by. They were glad he seemed to be in such a foul mood that he didn't hear them.

Off to the side one could see Murakami, Fuji and Akasora standing together, watching the boy walking by. The younger male shook his head. The girl got a pondering expression. The teacher was laughing.

"So... How long do you think it'll take for him to figure out that he doesn't actually have to wear that?" Fuji asked as she turned to Murakami.

"Honestly... Maybe never. As long as he doesn't calm down."

The reason Kiyoshi was so mad that he appeared as the shinigami himself was because he was wearing a large hat with the works "I am now the baby of Border" in bold letters. This was just a prank Akasora had come up with, but they somehow made him wear it.

"Would that really be a bad thing?" Akasora asked as he held his sides.

"Sensei, there's something wrong with you," the two said in unison.

Akasora simply shrugged as he enjoyed the scene.

At some point he brought out his phone just so he could have this recorded.

'Is he...planning on making some kind of snuff film without us knowing...?'

Fuji and Murakami took a large step away from the teacher.

They were planning on going back to their classes since lunch was almost over, but stopped when they saw Kiyoshi stomp his way towards them.

"Hey! Murakami! Ya mind checkin' up on her again!?"

"Hm? That's fine, I suppose."

Fuji looked at the two with a questioning look. She knew that it was probably a secret between the two, but now she was interested. The reason being that Kiyoshi didn't curse a talk when he had asked Murakami.

She was about to ask what it was about, but a glare from Kiyoshi stopped her.

More so because he left right after said glare than because of it.

"Murakami-kun," Fuji started, "who does he want you to check on?"

"Sorry, Senpai, but I'd rather not have him targeting me. I will say that she's younger than us, so she's a few grades lower as well."

Fuji simply nodded her head as her underclassman took his leave.

She started to leave as well.

She wondered who the person could be, and so made a mental declaration to find out who they were. There a few things that came to mind, but she still wanted to see for herself.

* * *

"Hey, isn't she part of _that family?_ "

"Those wild animals? Her? Really? _She looks normal_..."

"It's true! She's one of those _degenerate liars_."

"But she's so pretty~ Life's unfair!"

Hoshi looked down at her lap while she sat at a park bench.

She heard everything people were saying about her, but she was much to kind to actually do anything about it. They spoke about her family like they were a bunch of reckless animals that had been accidentally let out of captivity and needed to be captured.

"Even if they all accept what is always being said about them... _it is still very insulting._ "

Hoshi muttered these words under her breath with as much disdain she could muster.

Which wasn't particularly much.

She had always been the kind, protected one that no one would dare approach out of fear of being overshadowed by her presence. She gave off such a radiant and glorious aura that anyone who simply looked at her would try (and fail) to look away simply because they found themselves too plain and unworthy to be within 10 kilometers of her.

But that's also why so many hated her.

She was considered normal in a family of monsterous soldiers that could declare war on the world with a cool expression simply because they wanted to save a few they cared about.

That family was considered the ultimate family of soldiers. They were savage when fighting, uncaring about anything that got in their way, determined to see their objectives through and most of all they were a family that could easily get others on their side so that they would have their own army to go into war with.

And she was the 'normal' one among that family.

The princess who no one dared to walk up to out of fear of being unworthy was the 'normal' one.

A princess younger sister who was beyond everyone's reach.

A genius older brother with insomnia.

A vicious older brother who can copy any movement.

A destructive older sister that can take on a large person at least three times her size.

Two (deceased) parents that were considered the best soldiers Japan has had in the modern era.

Everyone feared or respected them.

"Hey, Hoshi-san, your brother asked me to get you two."

"Oh. Thank you, Murakami-san."

"No need for the 'san'. I'm pretty use to your brother just calling me whatever."

A breath of fresh air. That's what Murakami Kou was to Hoshi. He was a nice, cool breath if fresh air that saw her and her brother as people he could get along with and _not_ a vicious person or an reachable princess.

She wasn't the only one to feel this way about this boy either. She had been told a few times by her eldest brother that Murakami Kou was the closest thing to a friend he had. Most of the people saw him as an animal, but Murakami, his teacher and "some strange girl that babbles on without end" were the one at the school who saw him as a classmate and person.

"Hoshi-san-"

"I am sorry to interrupt...Senpai, but please, practice what you preach."

"Hm. Alright. Hoshi-chan, if you don't mind me asking, where _are_ your other siblings? Your brother hates speaking about any family member, except you, so I was just wondering."

Hoshi looked down as the two walked, ignoring the glares from both buys and girls.

Taiyōko Kushikage. The arrogant older sister of hers that could take down their dad in no time and put to shame any martial arts master.

Taiyōko Mukuro. The genius child who has already graduated from school and can make professors run home crying to their parents.

These two the two siblings Murakami spoke of.

"Oh... Well... They are currently in Sweden. They did not tell me the details, but they have messenged me to say they would come to visit next month."

"I see. To be honest with you, I'm a bit interested in meeting them. What are their names?"

"Kushikage is our older sister while Mukuro is our brother that is between us."

"Kushikage... Beautiful shadow... Kiyoshi... Pure... Mukuro... Corpse... Hoshi... Star... Such interesting names when you think about it. While I can't say anything about the other two, I think both your name and your brother's go well with you."

"You...think so?" Hoshi pushed he hair behind her ear and looked away with a small blush.

"Yeah. Star Sun Child. Pure Sun Child. They both fit. You give off an aura that resembles a star; beautiful to look out, seeming to be out of reach-"

Hoshi frowned at hearing that.

"-but always there, shining for others to see. Your brother on the other hand is actually quite honest. You just have to look for it."

A breath of fresh air. That was what Murakami Kou was to Hoshi and Kiyoshi.

Someone who saw them as people.

The one they could consider a true and great friend.

* * *

"Are those two twins?"

"No."

"How do you know?"

"Because Arashiyama-kun has two younger siblings."

"So that means..."

Fuji turned to Kiyoshi as the two walked through the Border base. They had been walking by and saw two particular people who looked remarkable alike. She really couldn't blame the boy for thinking they were twins.

The two had been told to meet up with Akasora when they got to the building, but they hadn't seen him yet. They went to the spot he had said, but no one was actually there so they didn't bother staying.

"Hey, you two!"

Snapping out of her thoughts Fuji turned to see Kiyoshi make his way over to the two. She saw the two wonder who the person walking (stomping) up to them was and let out a sigh before following.

"You, brown haired bitch, are you this fuckface's clone?"

"Uh..."

"Show more respect to them." Fuji came up behind Kiyoshi and slammed her fist onto his head. "I am sorry about him. He still needs to be trained."

"It's fine~" the brunet said as he put his hand in a bag of crackers. "This the new guy Akasora-san talked about?"

"So you've heard, huh? Well yes, he is the new person who will be joining us. His name is-"

"I can introduce myself, bitch. Name's Kiyoshi."

"Jin Yuuichi. This is Arashiyama Jun. And no, I'm not his clone~"

"Bullshit."

Fuji let out another sigh as she turned away from those two and faced Arashiyama.

"I'm sorry about him, Arashiyama-kun. He still needs to trained his manners. I'll give credit to his fighting abilities, but other than that he's..."

"It's fine. I can see you have your hands full yet again." Taking a look at the two, Arashiyama scrunched up his face a bit. "By the way... He wouldn't happen to be related to the Taiyōko family, would he?"

" **Mention that name again and I'll fuckin' slit your throat right here and now**."

The area around them seem to grow colder as the three others felt a small shiver run down their spines.

Even with their rankings they felt some fear when they heard how ferocious and cold the youngest one's voice turned. What was worse was that he looked ready to follow through with the threat.

"Don't speak like that to those who hold a higher position than you."

Shinoda stood behind Kiyoshi with _his_ fist on the younger one's head. He didn't seem to feel threatened by the glare he was relieving and instead turned to the other three.

"Shitokei, Chishi said he would be running late and to meet up with him at the spot in five minutes."

"Right..."

"Good. Now let's get going." Shinoda moved his hand to grab Kiyoshi's ear and start pulling him.

"Hey! Let the fuck go you fucking shitface!"

The three of the same age simply stared at the two walking away for a bit before letting out simultaneous sighs.

Arashiyama and Jin gave Fuji a pitying look before taking their leave. They knew that she certainly did have her work cut out for her this time. They had seen her doing multiplex request all over the place, but this seemed like the hardest one.

Fuji gave her thanks as she started to follow the two males down the hall.

"Okay, okay, okay, you fucktard! Let go of my fucking ear now!"

Shinoda let out a long sigh as he did so, also making Kiyoshi fall to the ground. He turned around to see that Fuji was right behind them and started walking again.

"Tsk."

"Tai-... Kiyoshi, I have some...interesting news to tell you."

"Odd fucking time to bring it up, but I really don't give a flying fuck."

"It has to do with your siblings."

"..."

"Exactly. Well, the other two will be coming back for a while from their assignment. I wanted to give you a heads up before you use some random bench as a weapon to assult them."

"WHAT THE FUCK!? Can't they just stay over there!? We don't fucking them back here! Screw it! I'll put that damn corpse into the ground and slash that bitch's-"

"Excuse me." Fuji ignored the younger one and looked at Shinoda. "If you wouldn't kind, sir... What are they like? I'm sure I will have to meet them at some point, so I would like to know beforehand."

"Well..."

* * *

There was a small clothing shop in Sweden.

"No. I have nothing to sell to you."

"Why not?" Taiyōko Kushikage slammed both of her hands on the small counter. "I have the money right here! I brought enough money to pay your exorbitant price and enough for a tip, so why won't you sell them to me!?"

"Because look at you!"

The shop owner pointed towards Kushikage's outfit.

She had a simple outfit of ripped up jeans, a long coat that reached her ankles and shreds of clothing wrapped around her breasts. All-in-all she had the appearance of a woman who could pull off any look.

"I'm not going to let you cut up the vintage clothes I travelled all over the world to get! Here, I'll explain it for you since you don't seem to understand their value. These clothes are all worth much more than even the Triggers we are given!... Maybe a little less..."

"I know that. And like I said, I'll make sure to make a bag out of the pieces I cut off."

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

The shop owner tore at his head with both hands and yelled like an enraged animal.

"Anyway, I won't sell anything to you and I won't work with you either! If you don't like it go crying to the multitude of gods you Japanese people have!"

"…I see. And I haven't even explained what the job is yet… If you really won't help me…that's too bad…"

Kushikage's shoulders drooped.

"I suppose I'll have to do something about the rumored Clothes Cutter myself."

"Mention that kind of thing sooner."

Taiyōko Kushikage's current job was to help make a smaller Border base in Sweden with her brother and to train any newbies.

The people in her original, Japanese Border Headqurters had been convinced that they should at least have smaller bases in the other countries to help with any Neighbor attacks there. There was already one in America and a few other places like Germany, but she was sent to the one in Sweden.

'At least we get to go visit Japan again later.'

Kushikage couldn't actually say she missed the country or that she was homesick. She never felt anything like that to begin with. But what she _could_ say was that she wanted to check up on her little sister and see if there were any strong agents there.

"By the way, where is that bastard Mukuro?"

Mukuro was Kushikage's youngest brother.

"He's packing our things."

"So he's doing nothing?"

"…"

"Well, I suppose that's a given. It's not like it's my business to begin with."

After saying that, the shop owner changed the subject.

"Oh yeah, Kushi. Aren't you cold dressed like that in this weather?"

The shop owner and agent - Berwald - had his arms wrapped around himself and was shivering. Their current month was a freezing one that could make even a person on fire shiver. Small lakes were frozen solid enough to walk over.

And yet Kushikage had most of her upper-body and parts of her legs completely bare.

"Not really."

"Unbelievable…"

Berwald had blue lips, visible exhalations, and was dressed as thickly as someone taking on Everest.

"So what's this Clothes Cutter you mentioned? And what the heck? Why do we have to deal with it? Aren't we suppose to focus on Neighbor attacks?"

"It's exactly what it sounds like. Some unknown person is cutting up the clothes of passersby in the street. So far, all the damage has been to their clothes and no one has been injured. As for the latter part of what you said... Apparently this person is using a weapon that looked like a green lightsaber. Meaning that it might be made of Trion."

"We're going to kill this guy, right?"

"If I'm bored enough. Honestly though, you take your job way to seriously."

"The Clothes Cutter, huh? I'm amazed you aren't the prime suspect."

"Hm? Why would I be a suspect?" Kushikage asked with her head cocked to the side in puzzlement and her most of her body exposed.

Berwald could only sigh.

"So do you have an idea where the person is?"

"A bit. Apparently this person..."

"Yes? Go on."

Before she could though...

An old bearded man collapsed to the floor in front of the Berwald and Kushikage. Both legs and part of the crotch of his jeans had been completely cut off making them more like briefs than even cut jeans. Not only that but his shirt and jacket had been cut to look like some sort of short crop top.

Berwald instinctually covered his face with his hands.

"How horrid! This proud man has had all his pride taken from him so he doesn't even have the willpower to fix his beard!"

"Yes, if you're going to cut them, it has to be done with more beauty."

"I'm really not going to sell anything to you!"

Then Kushikage heard footsteps getting closer to them.

"Boring."

Kushikage immediately spun around and swung the scabbard of her Trion-made sword at about the same time as someone walking up to them got close. The two figures crossed.

"Who are you!?" Kushikage asked while glaring at her opponent.

The identity of the attacker who must be the Clothes Cutter was a woman about Kushikage's age. She was a beautiful woman with hair that was more silver than it was gold. She was wearing a single piece of clothing that looked like a scarf around her breasts, and underwear-like piece if clothing that covered her lower area with, long gloves on both hands that reached her elbows and were decorated with a cow print for some reason, and long boots that reached her thighs and were decorated in the same way as the gloves.

Taiyōko Kushikage's eyes turned to dots.

Berwald was in complete shock. He spoke as his body shook.

"That's…such an arousing outfit!"

Kushikage was a bit pissed off with that ridiculous outfit in front of her.

"Where do I even start!? Well, I don't think you're wearing enough of a top, so do something about that!"

The mysterious exhibitionist swelled up her ridiculously large chest and spoke.

"You're not wearing enough of a top either. Even I'm impressed with that sexiness."

"Screw this...!"

"Wait, Kushi! It's too soon to draw your sword! And let me say that objectively you're dressed much too sexily as well!"

"Why are you holding me back and agreeing with her!? Did you forget that I have to fight that exhibitionist Clothes Cutter!?"

"No, we might still be able to settle this peacefully! We have to bear with it for now!"

"Really!? To be honest, I'm about halfway to giving up! Shouldn't I hurry up and take out that pervert!?"

"Just bear with it a little longer! Although, it's true that as a clothing professional I can tell you that outfit is ridiculous. That cow print is meaningless! It's just there to accentuate the idea of breasts! And that's caused my gaze to become fixed on them this whole time!"

"That's just because you like them!"

"Why are you even mad!? You're not usually like this!"

"Because! Pulling off the sexy angle while having such an arrogant smirk is my thing!"

Berwald flew into the air from the punch he got. Luckily he was in a Trion body.

Seeing that, the woman giggled. It was a quiet, charming laugh that was the complete opposite of her outfit.

"That man can't be blamed for being aroused. After all, I'm a mature older woman who can change her appearance with a Trion body."

'Trion body?'

She had found her answer to the issue. Kushikage now knew that the person in front of her was in a Trion Body. Using one meant that you could change your clothes and not fear freezing or buring. She herself may have seemed like she was in a Trion body from the start, but she really didn't feel the cold.

Not only that but a person could even change what they looked like while using a Trion body, if they changed the appearance beforehand that is. That meant there was a possibility this wasn't what the woman in front of Kushikage really looked like.

"Why are you using up Trion for something like this? There is literally no point in going through this trouble."

"Tsk tsk tsk. You of all people should understand why I am doing this. I am simply bored and found a good way to waist time when I have nothing to do. Not only can I change my appearance but I can also change the way I cut the clothes of people up," said the girl as she swelled up her chest even further. "This is my answer to what a people like is do for fun!"

'So she's not just idiotically dressed? She's an idiot, too?'

For an instant—just an instant—Taiyōko Kushikage felt like completely giving up, but she shook her head and managed to pull herself together. She was the oldest between her siblings that were a part of a family of soldiers. She couldn't give up here.

But she couldn't deny that she was distracted.

"Okay! I lost heart there for a second, so let's talk this over and fight!"

"Hah hah! We have both thrown away our humanity to wear these embarrassing outfits! This will be extra fun!"

"So you still have a sense of shame! Good, that means I can beat you without regret…!"

Kushikage was oddly overcome with emotion, but the sexy woman's attack was relatively fast and strong for someone using a Trion Body. And as their blades clashed, the woman spoke.

"This is the true value of being a warrior girl. Hey~ Ya wanna help me out~?

Kushikage wondered what exactly the woman was doing. Talking during a fight was a definite managa-like thing, so Kushikage allowed it. She always enjoyed how other raged about it.

However, nothing really happened. Then Kushikage heard something while sitting there confused.

"Gaaaaaaaah!" came the sudden scream of the Berwald.

"What? What? What happened?" Kushikage said as she turned to look.

Berwald was now on his feet, but didn't have any weapon out to help in the fight. He was looking at the two, but more so towards the woman.

"I have this little thing where all the men I meet grovel before me and do as I say. My sex appeal is way beyond what you have."

Kushikage thought of it as the man who was now standing was a secret pervert who just wanted a 'reward' from the woman. Kushikage looked coldly at the shop owner.

He averted his gaze awkwardly and just said "sorry".

Kushikage simply nodded.

"I'll chop off your head to send you into your real body. After that I'll chop off your head again."

"Wait! Wait, Kushikage! My sense of justice is in conflict inside my mind right now! I'll break free of this cowardly perversion with love and courage, so just watch my manly way of living!"

The woman then bent over, put her palms on her lap and used her upper arms to squeeze together her breasts while she closed one eye in a wink.

"If you take her out, I'll show you all sorts of things. Do you prefer to do things or to have things done to you?"

"…I'm sorry, Kushikage. My heart just moved past the point of no return."

"Okay, your head's coming off twice."

Despite what she said, a bit of kindness must have remained within Kushikahe, because she just sent him into his real body and nothing more. She did swear to "beat the pervert in him out of him" later on though.

Having taken care of the traitor, Kushikage returned to the battle and asked about the core of the situation.

"By the way, why are you only slicing up people's clothes? I know you're bored, but fighting is really the best way to deal with it."

"Oh, I also enjoy humiliating guys. I guess you could say I'm a sadist."

Kushikage's desire to kick her ass for being a nuisance to others and a "copycat" increased by 20%.

* * *

"She's a crazy bitch that can get on everyone's nerves by simply existing."

Fuji raised an eyebrow. She did this more so because Shinoda didn't seem like he had any objections about the description.

"So, when are those two fuckers suppose to be here?"

"With _her_ being one of those people... I can't say for sure."

"Tsk."

'Just how bad is this woman...!

* * *

 **And... There you have it... Until next time! Bye!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5** : Stand Out

* * *

Taiyōko Kiyoshi never liked to curse... That's a lie. He would curse whenever he wanted. But! He felt like cursing much more right now. Maybe even put an actual curse on some people. It would serve them right, he thought. After all, they lied to him.

He was fine with the truth, so the fact they lied about it got his blood really going.

He was currently standing with others, all of them wearing generally the same thing.

They were in a large area that could easily fit them all. A large stage was in front of them with a curtain hanging from the rafters. Someone stood on the stage. He was one of the directors of Border, the one that had made him do all of this in the first place, to be exact.

Kiyoshi glared as Shinoda Masafumi spoke to them all, a smile on his face and professional aura around his body.

"I'm Border HQ Director, Shinoda Masafumi. We welcome your enlistment. Today, you become C-Rank agents... In other words, trainees. The future of Mikado City and of humanity rests on your shoulders. Work hard every day to become official agents."

Kiyoshi clicked his tongue when he noticed the quick, but critical look he got from the director.

Shinoda finished speaking while bringing his hand up to his head for a salute with a smile.

"I look forward to the day we can fight together. That's it from me. Arashiyama Squad will explain the rest."

Kiyoshi could feel his eye twitching as he watched the squad wearing red took center stage.

One of the "clones" he had met before appeared to be the captain of the squad, as well as the conductor for enlistment.

'Well...fuck.'

Everyone was split up into, the ones who wanted to be Snipers going with the smiling brown-haired boy of the squad, while the ones who would be Attacker or Gunners stayed with Arashiyama and the remaining member of the squad.

Kiyoshi took note of the people around him and how they were acting.

Some looked like they were fawning over the two Arashiyama Squad members at the front while others looked like they were pumping themselves up.

Kiyoshi could somewhat understand the fans of Arashiyama Squad and did feel somewhat bad for the ones who had to pump themselves up.

He himself let out a small sigh and moved the small amount of hair that was getting into his eyes.

'I should probably get a haircut later on. Having hair in your eyes while fighting could make even more blind spots that might fuck you over in a fight.'

"Hello. I'm Arashiyama Jun, in charge of the Attackers and Gunners."

Hearing the face of Border start to speaking, Kiyoshi focused back in on what was going on.

"First off... Congratulations on your enlistment. Like Director Shinoda said... You're trainees for now. Until you're promoted to B-Rank, you can't be placed on duty. So how can you become official agents? We'd like to explain that first. Look at the back of your left hand."

Doing as they were told, everyone held up their left hands and looked down.

"The Trigger holder you all have now contains one combat Trigger that chose. That number on your hand shows how much mastery you have demonstrated over your Trigger. Bring that number up to 4,000. That's what you need to be promoted to B-Rank."

Kiyoshi couldn't help but wonder how many points Fuji, Murakami, and Akasora had.

'That shitty old man is an A-Rank, so he'll probably have a lot. Don't know about the others, though.'

Kiyoshi gave a small shrug as he put his hand down.

On the back of said hand, the image of "2,700" could be seen on it. Although no one did see it.

"There are two ways to earn points. Get good marks in the group training sessions twice a week. Or fight over points in the Rank Wars. We'll have you get a taste of training first. Follow me."

Arashiyama and the other squad member walked off the stage and headed for the door, motioning for everyone else to follow. Which they did.

They were led through a hallway and continued walking.

As he followed the crowd, Kiyoshi noticed someone that actually stood out a bit to him.

The first person was a rather tall girl. She was wearing the mandatory outfit but seemed to give off a stronger feeling than anyone else there. She reminded Kiyoshi a bit of Fuji, but less intense. She had her hair in a high ponytail and had a hard stare.

The reason why she seemed so different from everyone else was the fact that she seemed to be like Kiyoshi. She didn't even face anyone and looked rather standoffish.

'She looks like someone who would be fun to fight. Definitely less violent than that shitty sister or the wisteria bitch.'

Once he returned back to looking forward, Kiyoshi noticed that they were coming up to a room.

The room, in general, was very large and even had three smaller rooms in the middle of it. Tall bleachers were placed in front of the three rooms and stairs lead up to the top, where there were more doors.

Arashiyama began to speak again.

"We're here. The first training exercise is combat against a Neighbor. In this simulation mode, you will fight Neighbors recreated from Border's accumulated data. Combat ready!"

In the middle training room, something started to materialize.

Once that something was done, they could all see that a large Trion soldier was standing there, letting out a rather loud roar.

"What you'll be fighting is a beginner-level opponent. You've all seen this type of large Neighbor. It's been made a bit smaller for training. It doesn't attack, but it has thick armor. You get five minutes each. The faster you beat it, the more points earned. If you feel confident, go for a high score. That's all! Each room can begin!"

* * *

Shitokei Fuji would like to think of herself as a supportive person. Even more so to her friends.

So, then, why is it that she felt like she would get much enjoyment from watching Kiyoshi fail?

She was standing at the top of the bleachers in the training room, looking down at all of the trainees. She had been sizing everyone up and came to the conclusion that Kiyoshi would be one of if not the best person there.

The only person she saw that look like a match for Kiyoshi was a girl with a ponytail who looked as standoffish as Kiyoshi.

"Even so... Why do I feel like watching him fail? I am most definitely not a sadist..."

"Maybe you just want to tease him about it later. I don't blame you. I'd watch that brag fail just to mess around with him afterward."

Fuji turned around to see Akasora and Murakami walking up to her.

"Hello, Sensei. Murakami-kun. So you two decided to come and see as well? I guess it's to be expected that his teacher and friend would want to see how he does after helping him out so much."

"Nah. I came over to rile up the brat. He doesn't really see me as a teacher outside of class so no reason for me to be here for that reason. As for this guy, I'm not too sure."

"I actually did come here to see how he does."

"I guess we came at a good time too. It's his turn to go. Anyone wanna bet on what his score is gonna be?"

Fuji turned back to the training rooms and saw Kiyoshi walk into the left room.

She also noticed that the girl she had seen walked into the right room at the same time.

That's when the calculations in her head started up.

Fuji would be able to properly calculate the difference between the two since they entered the rooms at the same time and would start at the same time.

This was done as quickly and simply as breathing for her.

* * *

Fuji wasn't the only one to notice the girl enter the right training room.

Kiyoshi kept an eye on the girl until they were both completely in their respective rooms.

He looked up at the large but shrunken Trion soldier. It was far different from the first ones he had fought back at his school, but he had certainly seen its type before. He had gone against a few before while he had been training with Akasora and Fuji.

He looked over at the digital timer on the wall and saw that the five minutes were reset.

'Five minutes is too fucking long. Two or three should be more than enough for someone who can actually handle themselves. Anyone who reaches those five minutes shouldn't fucking bother even trying to enter.'

Letting out a small sigh, he got ready for the test.

He placed a hand on the Trion-made blade at his side and lowered his body a bit.

As he was given the signal to start he moved.

'Just end it quickly.'

His first attack - a flash.

There was dead silence throughout the entire room for a few seconds.

Murmurs and some shouts could be heard as well.

Kiyoshi looked up at the time and saw that his showed "4:57.5".

He glared.

He didn't glare at his time. No. He glared at the time from the room that was on the right."

"Three seconds, four nanoseconds..."

That girl, the one that both Kiyoshi and Fuji noticed, had beaten Kiyoshi by a single nanosecond. Both had started at the same time, but no one would be able to tell who finished first if it wasn't for the timer.

That single girl had been able to keep up, and even surpass, someone who came from a family of soldiers and who had been training under someone as skilled as Akasora, if only by a bit.

Kiyoshi couldn't get mad at this. He didn't feel any anger towards the girl who had barely beaten him. All he felt was that he could have done better, even if that wasn't true at the moment.

"Alright! Next ones!"

* * *

"Damn. Who knew that you would end up as the talk of the place alongside that girl. Oh, wait. I did. Although I thought you would have gotten at least two seconds. I guess that just means you have to work harder."

Kiyoshi could feel his eyebrow twitching as he walked towards the solo rank war booths with the three that had been watching him.

He had met up with them as he was about to leave and was actually pulled along by Fuji before he could say anything.

Murakami had explained the solo matches to him while he was being dragged off by the overly strong girl.

Now here they were, reaching the booths that seemed to be crowded with multiple agents.

"So I just need to kick a bunch of ass and get up to B-Rank. Easy enough. Murakami, you're up first. Or are you first, shitty old man?"

"No can do. A-Ranks like me and Shitokei can't take on weak C-Rank like you."

"You piece of... Murakami! Get your ass in there now! I need to let off some fucking steam!"

Murakami gave his teacher a look before backing up.

Before Murakami could run away, Kiyoshi got him in a headlock and started pulling him towards the booths.

As he tried to escape the death grip, Murakami reached out for Fuji or Akasora to save him.

"Well, at least we don't have to deal with him now. We'll just leave those two to go at it for a while. I'm sure that brat will tire himself out in no time. Or just get bored with fighting him. Either way, not our problem."

It was Fuji's turn to give the teacher a look.

"Akasora-san, you are an odd teacher."

"Yeah, well, messing with my students is allowed, isn't it? I'm not personally doing anything-"

"That's not what I meant."

"So you've figured it out, huh? I guess that Side Effect of yours really is something special. When Murakami told me about you I knew that it would be a good thing to have you around. Although that's not to say I'm just using you. If you ever need anything then just ask."

"Hm... Thank you for that compliment. Now, if you don't mind, could you please tell me who plan to make our Operator? Also, I'm assuming you have the papers ready. Who do you plan on making the captain?"

"You'll meet your Operator once you two become an actual squad. As for the captain... I'll leave that up to you two. I have no right to go that far. Besides... You seem rather into the idea of making a squad with him. Any particular reason?"

"..."

That was a question that Fuji had been trying to figure out herself.

She could make some half-assed excuse as to why she is agreeing to this, but that would be pointless.

The best way she could explain it was that it was just an interest in seeing how well he could do as an agent of Border.

He had gotten a second more than Fuji. He seemed rude but was still likable in some way. He was a quicker learner and was able to put things he had learned to use right away. There was quite a number of thing Fuji had found out about Kiyoshi in a small amount of time.

Those things were the things that made him interesting.

"Well, I guess the reason doesn't matter."

Fuji looked back up at Akasora. When she started looking down was unknown to her.

"It's no problem."

"Not yet at least... Anyways. On a different matter. How long do you think it'll take for him to get to B-Rank?"

"The end of the day."

Akasora raised an eyebrow.

"Really now..."


End file.
